Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Hello Friends!Exciting things are happening around here! : ) This Sat. 3/22, I will have 50 limited edition, hand-signed & numbered "pre-release" copies of my Debut EP Tightrope Walkerat the Ark when I open for the Ben Daniels Band! I am also including a free digital download code on each copy of the CD! Doors open @ 7:30pm. I'm on at 8pm sharp!Tickets can be purchased here: http://theark.org/3827.html

Here is a sneak peek of the first track off the EP called "Guinevere":

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

A few months ago my friend Mike Vial proposed doing a song-a-week challenge with a group of local and regional musicians. It would go like this: each week we would pick a phrase, write a song using said phrase, record it & post it for the others in the group to see. He called it "The Polar Vortex Songwriting Challenge". So far it has been an amazingly productive experience for myself and others in the group. I've written more new material in two months than I have in the last year! As an independent artist, it's also helped me feel the pressure of a deadline and learn how to release the need for perfectionism.

Admittedly I have a tendency to work slow. I have been know to hem and haw over small details and delay sharing my finished work. (Yes, the EP is still coming!, lol) But this game has taught me the value of letting go. Originally, I was hesitant to share these songs publicly, (They are basically demos that are written and recorded, sometimes in one take, at home.) but I feel good about the songs and hope that there will be folks inspired by hearing about the process.

Recently I came across a very inspiring video by Ira Glass that encouraged people to overcome the gap between your TASTE and your SKILL simply by being prolific. I am taking that advice to heart:

I have started a new soundcloud page and have been posting the songs there:

https://soundcloud.com/spencermichaud

Feel free to follow me and leave comments! : )

This week's phrase was "Chasing my heart". At first I tried to write about the story of Artemis and the hunter, but found that I was having trouble developing the story. (What else can you do but chase her? If you catch her, Zeus will SMITE you!!) So I shifted mid-stream to the story of a street photographer named Vivian Maier whose photos were recently discovered by a Chicago man who bought a few mysterious cases of undeveloped film rolls at an auction. This allowed me to surround myself with her imagery and imagine her thought processes as she snapped her way through the big city on her day off from her job as a nanny. I always do quite a bit of research before I write a song. I approach songwriting as a novelist or a method actor would; complete immersion in the subject of interest. It helps me come up with imagery that I would never have been able to invoke just from memory.

Here are the fruits of my labor this week:

Black & White

It's the perfect light

Late afternoon

Spots & Stripes

Under hats & ties

Their faces bloom

A baby cries

The clown weeps too

It's a story of lines

Shadows & clues

Snapping through the city streets

Who knows what I might find

Behind the Brownie box

I am the spy

Fur & Lace

Their hands embrace

I crank the spool

Dirt & Grime

Father time

Can be so cruel

The tired old men

They hypnotize

Lightning & leather

Frame their eyes

Rusting in the dusty corners

The ancient soldiers sigh

Behind the Brownie box

I am the spy

Chasing my heart

In the storefront mirrors

I am the ghost without tears

Scatter my soul in the undeveloped
rolls

Maybe one day I'll reappear

Stay tuned for more updates on this project!

Here are some upcoming opportunities this month to hear me perform some of these tunes live!